Apparatus for painting, scale removing, traction and so on for massive bodies made of iron plates



p 1, 1964 KIYOSHI KONTANI ETAL 3,147,143

APPARATUS FOR PAINTING. SCALE REMOVING, TRACTION AND 50 ON FOR MASSIVE BODIES MADE OF IRON PLATES Filed Dec. 19, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet l E Sm Q N R Q t w Q Sept. 1964 KIYOSHI KONTANI ETAL 3,147,143

APPARATUS FOR PAINTING. SCALE REMOVING, TRACTION AND SO ON FOR MASSIVE BODIES MADE OF IRON PLATES Filed Dec. 19, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 V Ill/ IN V EN TORS y KW United States Patent 3,147,143 APPARATUS FOR PAINTING, SCALE REMOVING, TRACTION AND SO ON FOR MASSIVE BODIES MADE OF IRON PLATES Kiyoshi Kontani and Eiichi Kontani, both of No. 28 Minato-cho Z-chome, Hyogo-ku, Kobe, Japan Filed Dec. 19, 1961, Ser. No. 160,584 4 Claims. (Cl. 118-305) This invention relates to apparatus for painting, scale removing, traction and so on for massive bodies made of iron plates such as ships, tanks and buildings. The main object of this invention is to obtain an apparatus equipped with working devices operable by a radio control means which can creep on a massive iron body which is upstanding and hard to be approached.

It consists of an oblong frame made of non-magnetic material such as aluminum with a plurality of permanent magnets and an endless chain provided along each side of the frame, said magnets being supported by the endless chain to make a clearance between the magnets and the iron plate to be worked, and the endless chain is driven by a motor independently for each side of the frame. The frame has floors on which motors for driving endless chains, radio receiving set and working devices are installed, and the working devices are operated by radio controlling means. A radio control apparatus itself is well known to those skilled in the art, and it does not make a part of this invention.

The invention will be described further reference being made to the accompanying skeleton drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a part sectional plan view of the apparatus according to this invention providing a painting device;

FIG. 2 is a sectional elevation of FIG. 1 on the line A-B;

FIG. 3 is a part sectional elevation of a front part of the frame in an enlarged scale;

FIG. 4 is a section taken on the line C-C of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional enlarged view of a supplementary electric magnet;

FIG. 6 is a sectional elevation of a replaceable floor for coating lacker;

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a replaceable floor providing a scale removing device; and

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken on line DD of FIG. 7.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a rigid oblong frame made of non-magnetic material such as aluminum. A series of recesses 8 are made in the longer sides of the frame as viewed in FIGS. 3 and 4, and a long slot 7' is provided in the frame along and above the series of recesses.

In each recess 8 are inserted permanent magnets 10 and foot pieces 11 made of soft iron or steel closely in contact with each side of the magnets. An idle roller 12 is mounted on a pin 13 which rigidly connects the foot pieces on the opposite sides of magnets, and an endless chain 6 passes through the space under each roller 12. The rollers are so positioned relative to the foot pieces that a little clearance, say half a mm. is left between the bottom of the foot piece and the surface of the Work to be treated. It is an important matter that a little clearance is left between the foot piece and the surface of the work, otherwise the frame is too strongly attracted to the surface of the work by magnetic force and can not creep on the surface. The foot pieces are slidably fitted in shallow grooves 8a provided opposite each other on the front and rear walls of each recess, and can slide along the grooves as far as the chain allows. The long slot 7' is a passage for the returning side of the endless chain, and is covered with aluminum bar 14. Each side of the frame 1 is covered by aluminum plate 2, and the upper part of the frame is protected by a cover 3, made of preferably a transparent material. All the elements except magnets and foot pieces are made of non-magnetic material.

The oblong frame has a fixed floor 4 and a replaceable floor 5. Driving motors 7 and 7a and radio receiving set 50 are installed on the fixed floor and operating devices are provided on the replaceable floor, which is replaced by other floors having other working devices in accordance with the kind of work to be performed.

An endless chain 6 is extended between two sprocket wheels 9 and 10 on each side of the frame, and driving wheels 9 are driven by the motors 7 through worm gears 15 and sprocket wheels 16. The motors 7 provide a variable speed device so that each endless chain can be driven in either direction and at any speed independently of each other.

The bearing block for the shaft of the rear sprocket Wheel 10' is slidably mounted in the side frame along a guide slot in the frame, and a spring 17 urges the bearing block toward the rear end of the slot, so that the endless chain is tensioned.

The under parts of the front and rear ends of the frame are rounded, and the sprocket wheels 9 and 10 are positioned at higher points than the tread line of the endless chain, so that the chain is raised at the front and rear ends of the frame.

The foot pieces are always attracted to the surface of the work by magnetic force, but if there is a projection such as a rivet head or a seam between plates in the way of the apparatus, the links of the endless chain treading on the projection are pressed toward the apparatus by the projection so that the foot pieces at that part are slid into the recess against the attractive force of the magnets, whereby the apparatus can advance on its way over the obstacle.

The motors 7 are supplied with electric current from a source outside the apparatus. As the motors are independent of each other, the sprocket wheels 9 and 10 can be turned at the required speed and in either direction so that the apparatus can creep straight ahead or turn in either direction at a required speed.

Under the frame are provided one or more supplementary electric magnets 19. In FIG. 5, a plate 20 made of non-magnetic material is rigidly fixed on the lower side of the frame. A core 51 made of soft steel with a flange 52 is slidably inserted in a hole 53 in the plate 20 being guided by two rods 54 which are fixed on the plate and are loosely inserted in holes in the flange of the core. Around the core is provided a magnet coil 55 which is fixed to the plate 20, and the core is supported by helical springs mounted on the rods 54, so that the core is urged upward when the magnetic coil is not excited. When the coil is excited, the core is attracted to the surface of the work by the magnetic force, but a little clearance, say half a mm., is left between the bottom of the core and the surface of the work by a small projection 56 fixed on the bottom of the core. Supplementary electric magnets are used to assist the permanent mangets when the load on the apparatus is too large or the operation is practised under a vibrating condition.

Another motor 18 is installed on the fixed floor. This motor is to drive the working devices provided on the replaceable floor. The rotation of this motor is trans mitted to a vertical shaft 22 mounted on the fixed floor through worm gears 23, and the rotation of the vertical shaft is transmitted to a connecting rod 24 by an eccentric sheave and strap mechanism. The reciprocating motion of the connecting rod 24 turns an arm 25 of a vertical shaft 26 mounted on the replaceable floor, and a pinion 27 on the vertical shaft 26 meshes with a rack 23, whereby the latter can be slid along its guides 29.

There are various kinds of working devices according to the kinds of work to be performed. In the example 3 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 a plurality of brushes are provided for coating a paint on the surface of a construction. Depending walls 5a define a downwardly open space under the replaceable floor, and brushes 3% at least one spray gun 31 and infra-red lamps 32 are provided therein.

A longitudinally extending rack 33 meshes with a pinion 27a on the vertical shaft 26 under the floor 5, and a transversely extending rack 35 meshes with a pinion on a vertical shaft 36 which is driven by the vertical shaft 26 through chain 37 and sprocket wheels. A transversely extending bar 38 under the floor is rigidly connected with the rack 33 so that the bar 38 moves longitudinally together with the rack 33. Another transversely extending rack 39 meshes with a pinion fixed on a vertical shaft 40, which is driven by the vertical shaft 26 through chain 37 and sprocket wheels. A brush 3% is attached at the lower end of each vertical rod 41 which is turned by the racks 28 and 35, a pinion fixed on each rod 41 being meshed with the racks. Some brushes are directly fixed to the bars 38 and 39, so that they are rotating and others not rotating, scrub the surface of the works where paint has been sprayed by spray gun 31.

Coating material is sent from a tank in a condition in which it is easily sprayed by compressed air. A coating material which does, not quickly dry such as paint is sprayed on the surface of the work and is made even by scrubbing with the rotating and reciprocating brushes and dried by the lamps 32. When a quick drying coating material such as lacquer is to be applied it is sprayed with spray guns and dryed by lamps without scrubbing with brushes. FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of this kind which has a replaceable floor 5 and walls 5a and at least one spray gun 31 and a plurality of lamps 32. Compressed air and coating material are supplied from a compressor and a tank on he ground through flexible pipes 57 and 58.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate another replaceable floor to be used for scale removing operations. A series of scale removing cutters 43 are fixed to a bar 44 which corresponds to the rack 28 in FIG. 1, and the cutters are transversely moved along the surface of the iron plate to remove scales. 43a is a long cutter fixed to a bar 44a which corresponds to the rack 38 in FIG. 1, and is moved in the longitudinal direction. The cutters can raise their front edges turning the bars 44 and 44a through a small angle on a pivot pin 46, 460 at each end of respective bars by a motor 47. In case progress of the apparatus is pre vented, for example, by a rivet head on the surface, the motor 47 is turned to slowly turn a crank shaft 48 which pulls the connecting rods 49 through reduction gears so that the front edges of the cutters are raised whereby the apparatus can advance further.

A suction blower 45 is installed on the floor for removing dusty air. 59 and 60 are respectively delivery and suction pipes of the blower.

Electric devices for operating driving motors, spray guns and other working tools are controlled by radio receiving set 50, electric current being supplied from outside the apparatus. A radio operator operates the machine looking at the working surface by a telescope or television.

We claim:

1. A remotely controllable apparatus for performing a surface treating operation on an iron body, comprising a rigid frame of non-magnetic material and having longitudinal side pieces, said side pieces having a plurality of recesses therein transverse to the plane of the rigid frame, a plurality of pairs of foot pieces of magnetic material, one pair of foot pieces being slidably positioned in each recess for sliding movement into and out of the recess, at least one permanent magnet mounted between the foot pieces in each pair of foot pieces adjacent the one ends of the foot pieces within the recesses and the other ends of the foot pieces projecting out of the recess, a roller of non-magnetic material rotatably mounted between the foot pieces adjacent the ends of the foot pieces projecting out of the recesses, an endless chain of non-magnetic material along each side piece of the frame and running over each roller of the successive pairs of foot pieces in said plurality of foot pieces on the respective side pieces of the frame the chain as it passes over each roller being positioned between the roller of a pair of foot pieces and the other ends of the foot pieces, the radius of the roller plus the thickness of the chain being slightly greater than the distance from the axis of the roller to the ends of the foot pieces, motor means mounted on the frame and coupled to said endless chains for driving said chains for moving the apparatus over the surface of an iron body and steering the apparatus during such movement, and means on said frame for performing a surface treating operation on the iron body.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 further comprising at least one electro-magnet on said frame and directed in the same direction as the foot pieces, said electro-magnet having a short projection on the end thereof toward the surface on which the apparatus is to move,

said projection being of non-magnetic material for keeping the electro-magnet spaced from the surface slightly.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 in which said frame has thereon a fixed floor on which said motor means is mounted, and a replaceable floor on said frame and having tools thereon for performing the surface treating operation, and driving means connecting said motor means and said tools.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 3 in which said replaceable floor has a plurality of depending walls defining a downwardly open space, and said tools comprise at least one spray gun and a plurality of infra-red lamps.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS l l l 

1. A REMOTELY CONTROLLABLE APPARATUS FOR PERFORMINA A SURFACE TREATING OPERATION ON AN IRON BODY, COMPRISING A RIGID FRAME OF NON-MAGNETIC MATERIAL AND HAVING LONGITUDINAL SIDE PIECES, SAID SIDE PIECES HAVING A PLURALITY OF RECESSES THEREIN TRANSVERSE TO THE PLANE OF THE RIGID FRAME, A PLURALITY OF PAIRS OF FOOT PIECES OF MAGNETIC MATERIAL, ONE PAIR OF FOOT PIECES SLIDABLY POSTIONED IN EACH RECESS FOR SLIDING MOVEMENT INTO AND OUT OF THE RECESS, AT LEAST ONE PERMANENT MAGNET MOUNTED BETWEEN THE FOOT PIECES IN EACH PAIR OF FOOT PIECES ADJACENT THE ONE ENDS OF THE FOOT PIECES WITHIN THE RECESSES AND THE OTHER ENDS OF THE FOOT PIECES PROJECTING OUT OF THE RECESS, A ROLLER OF NON-MAGNETIC MATERIAL ROTATABLY MOUNTED BETWEEN THE FOOT PIECES ADAJCENT THE ENDS OF THE FOOT PIECES PROJECTING OUT OF THE RECESSES, AN ENDLESS CHAIN OF NON-MAGNETIC MATERIAL ALONG EACH SIDE PIECE OF THE GRAME AND RUNNING OVER EACH ROLLER OF THE SUCCESSIVE PAIRS OF FOOT PIECES IN SAID PLURALITY OF FOOT PIECES ON THE RESPECTIVE SIDE PIECES OF THE FRAME THE CHAIN AS IT PASSES OVER EACH ROLLER BEING POSITIONED BETWEEN THE ROLLER OF A PAIR OF FOOT PIECES AND THE OTHER ENDS OF THE FOOT PIECES, THE RADIUS OF THE ROLLER PLUS THE THICKNESS OF THE CHAIN BEING SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN THE DISTANCE FROM THE AXIS OF THE ROLLER TO THE ENDS OF THE FOOT PIECES, MOTOR MEANS MOUNTED ON THE FRAME AND COUPLED TO SAID ENDLESS CHAINS FOR DRIVING SAID CHAINS FOR MOVING THE APPARATUS OVER THE SURFACE OF AN IRON BODY AND STEERING THE APPARATUS DURING SUCH MOVEMENT, AND MEANS ON SAID FRAME FOR PERFORMING A SURFACE TREATING OPERATION ON THE IRON BODY. 